Matador Resources Shares Charge Higher Following Stifel Upgrade To Buy

Investors in shares of Matador Resources Co MTDR have been thankful for a Stifel upgrade from Hold to Buy Wednesday.

The stock last traded at $21.25, up nearly 6 percent from Tuesday's closing price.

Analyst Michael Scialla called Matador the "Delaware Basin leader." He highlighted the company's wells as "generating returns among the best in the industry from multiple zones in three projects."

From an investment standpoint, Scialla suggested he likes Matador shares as the stock "has lagged Permian peers this year (+2% vs 25%). In our view, the underperformance is primarily attributable to investor concern over a projected 2016 outspend ($215mn by our estimates) and potential balance sheet risk."

Only valued at about 10.4x the company's enterprise value to 2017 EBITDA compared to a Permian group average of 12.6x, Scialla noted "the implied 18% discount is too wide given the high quality of the company’s acreage, its solid track record of execution, and a likely midstream sale that will narrow, if not close, the funding gap."